I dont forgive people because
Im weak, I forgive them because I am strong enough to know
people make mistakes.

I never wanted to be
Marilyn, it just happened.Marilyn's like a veil I
wear over Norma Jeane.

Sometimes good things fall apart so better
things can fall together.

Its not how long
it takes, its whos taking you.

- as Sugar Kane
Kowalczyk, Some Like It Hot (1959)

Just because you fail once doesnt
mean youre gonna fail at everything.

A girl doesnt need anyone who
doesnt need her.

Boys think girls are like books, If the
cover doesnt catch their eye they wont bother to read
whats inside.

I think its just
elegant to have an imagination. I just have no imagination at all. I
have lots of other things, but I have no imagination.

- as The Girl Upstairs
in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

A strong man doesnt have to be
dominant toward a woman. He doesnt match his strength against a
woman weak with love for him. He matches it against the world.

Dreaming about being an actress, is more
exciting then being one.

For those who are poor in happiness, each
time is a first time;happiness never becomes a habit.

Better luck next time,
only not with me, of course.

- as Elsie Marina in The
Prince and the Showgirl (1957)

Thats the way you feel when
youre beaten inside. You dont feel angry at those
whove beaten you. You just feel ashamed.

You believe lies so you eventually learn
to trust no one but yourself.

I live to succeed, not to please you or
anyone else.

I can be smart when
its important.

- as Lorelei Lee from
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

It is better to be hated for what you are
than to be loved for what you are not.

What do I wear in bed? Why, Chanel No. 5,
of course.

I dont mind making jokes, but I
dont want to look like one.

This life is what you make it. No matter
what, youre going to mess up sometimes, its a universal
truth. But the good part is you get to decide how youre going
to mess it up. Girls will be your friends  theyll act
like it anyway. But just remember, some come, some go. The ones that
stay with you through everything  theyre your true best
friends. Dont let go of them.

Story of my life. I
always get the fuzzy end of the lollipop.

- as Sugar Kane
Kowalczyk, Some Like It Hot (1959)

I dont look at myself as a
commodity, but Im sure a lot of people have.

I have feelings too. I am still human.All I want is to be loved, for myself and
for my talent.

Always, always, always believe in
yourself, because if you don't, then who will, Sweetie? So keep your
head high, keep your chin up, and most importantly, keep smiling,
because life's a beautiful thing and there's so much to smile about.

Yes, I speak German. I
was born in Milwaukee.

- as Elsie Marina in The
Prince and the Showgirl (1957)

I'm not interested in money, I just want
to be wonderful.

If you can make a woman laugh, you can
make her do anything.

There used to be an actor. He played
Abraham Lincoln for so many years -this is true - he grew his own beard. He
went around in a shawl and you know what they used to say? 'He looks
like Lincoln. He talks like Lincoln. But he won't be satisfied until
he gets shot!'

- as Amanda Dell in
Let's Make Love (1960)

Ive never fooled anyone. Ive
let people fool themselves. They didnt bother to find out who
and what I was. Instead they would invent a character for me. I
wouldnt argue with them. They were obviously loving somebody I wasnt.

Keep smiling because life is a beautiful
thing and theres so much to smile about.

Its far better to be unhappy alone
than unhappy with someone  so far.

I learned to walk as a baby and I
havent had a lesson since.

Haven't you bothered me
enough, you big banana-head?

- as Angela Phinlay in
The Asphalt Jungle (1950)

We are all stars but we must learn how to shine.

If I am a star, the people made me a star.

Men who think that a womans past
love affairs lessen her love for them are usually stupid and weak.

I had onions at lunch. I
had garlic dressing at dinner. But he'll never know, because I stay
kissing sweet, the new Dazzledent way.

- as The Girl Upstairs
in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius
and its better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring.

Im pretty but not beautiful. I sin
but Im not the devil.Im good but Im not an angel.

Always be yourself. Retain individuality;
listen to the truest part of yourself.

I dont care how
rich he is, as long as he has a yacht, his own private railroad car,
and his own toothpaste.

- as Sugar Kane
Kowalczyk, Some Like It Hot (1959)

I think that love and work are the only
things that really happen to us.

It takes a smart brunette to play a dumb blonde.

Beneath the makeup and behind the smile I
am just a girl who wishes for the world.

I want you to find
happiness and stop having fun.

- as Lorelei Lee from
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

To all the girls that think youre
fat  because youre not a size zero youre the
beautiful one. Its society whos ugly.

I am not a victim of emotional conflicts.
I am human.

Sweetie, if youre going to be
two-faced, at least make one of them pretty.

No. Don't turn TV on.
Instead just turn me on. I light up like NEON. Just a tiny section of
your affection in my direction will do. Ooh.

- as Amanda Dell in
Let's Make Love (1960)

The nicest thing for me is sleep, then at
least I can dream.

Its nice to be included in
peoples fantasies but you also like to be accepted for your own sake.

Your clothes should be tight enough to
show youre a woman but loose enough to show youre a lady.

Before marriage, a girl has to make love
to a man to hold him.After marriage, she has to hold him to
make love to him.

A friend tells you what you want to hear;
a best friend tells you the truth.

Id like to show that I can get
publicity without using my ass or getting fired from a picture.

A stairway to nowhere!I think thats just elegant.

- as The Girl Upstairs
in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

When it gets hot like
this, you know what I do? I keep my undies in the icebox!

- as The Girl Upstairs
in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

All a girl really wants is for one guy to
prove to her that they are not all the same.

I want to grow old without facelifts. I
want to have the courage to be loyal to the face I have made.

Everyones a star and deserves the
right to twinkle.

I hate you and I despise you!Now give me back my tail!

- as Cherie in Bus Stop (1956)

I just got to feel that
whoever I marry has some real regard for me, aside from all that
lovin' stuff.

- as Cherie in Bus Stop (1956)

I think theres two things in human
beings&ldots; that they want to be alone, but they also want to be together.

I dress for men. A woman looks at your
clothes critically. A man appreciates them.

I dont know who invented high heels,
but all women owe him a lot!

Real diamonds! They must
be worth their weight in gold!

- as Sugar Kane
Kowalczyk, Some Like It Hot (1959)

I want to do the best that I can do in
that moment, when the camera starts, until it stops.

When it comes down to it, I let them think
what they want. If they care enough to bother with what I do, then
Im already better than them anyway.

Be real, be yourself, be unique, be true,
be honest, be humble, be happy&ldots;

If you cant handle me at my worst
you dont deserve me at my best.

I always say a kiss on
the hand might feel very good, but a diamond tiara lasts forever.

- as Lorelei Lee from
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

There isnt anybody that looks like
me without clothes on.

I dont mind living in a mans
world as long as I can be a woman in it.

Im very definitely a woman and I
enjoy it.

There was an old man
named Sidney&ldots; Who drank till he ruined a kidney. It shriveled
and shrank, but he drank and he drank&ldots; He had his fun doing it,
didnt he?

- as Lorelei Lee from
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

Success makes so many people hate you. I
wish it wasnt that way. It would be wonderful to enjoy success
without seeing envy in the eyes of those around you.

Fear is stupid, so are regrets.

The way you carry yourself is influenced
by the way you feel inside.You must feel attractive to be attractive.

Rachmaninoff&ldots; It
isnt fair&ldots;Every time I hear it, I
go to pieces&ldots; It shakes me, it quakes me. It makes me feel goose-pimply
all over. I dont know where I am or who I am or what Im doing.Dont stop.
Dont stop. Dont ever stop!

- as The Girl Upstairs
in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

The real lover is the man who can thrill
you by kissing your forehead or smiling into your eyes or just
staring into space.

She was a girl who knew how to be happy
even when she was sad.And thats important.

Im selfish, impatient, and insecure.
I make mistakes. I am out of control and at times, hard to handle.
But if you cant handle me at my worst, then you dont
deserve me at my best.

You know, there's a word
for what you are and it's not Deputy Head of the Far Eastern Department.

- as Elsie Marina in The
Prince and the Showgirl (1957)

Friendship is the bestiest thing that
comes to life .

Ive spent most of my life running
away from myself.

I believe that everything happens for a
reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go
wrong so that you appreciate them when theyre right, you
believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself,
and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.

I dont mind being burdened with
being glamorous and sexual.But what goes with it can be a burden.

I mean a girl can walk
around backstage with nothing on except her good will and nobody will
even turn his head. The same girl, fully dressed, walks down an aisle
of clerks in an office - pinched black and blue. What's the matter
with you people, anyway?

- as Amanda Dell in
Let's Make Love (1960)

I restore myself when Im alone.

You never know what life is like, until
you have lived it.

I want to grow old without facelifts.I want to have the courage to be loyal to
the face I have made.

Wanting to be someone else is a waste of
the person you are.

First, Im trying to prove to myself
that Im a person.Then maybe Ill convince myself that
Im an actress.

Hi. Its me,
dont you remember? The tomato from upstairs.

- as The Girl Upstairs
in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

You sure have strong thumbs!

- as The Girl Upstairs
in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

Frankly, Ive never considered my own
figure so exceptional;until quite recently, I seldom gave it any
thought at all.

I don't mind being burdened with being
glamorous and sexual. Beauty and femininity are ageless and can't be
contrived, and glamour, although the manufacturers won't like this,
cannot be manufactured. Not real glamour; it's based on femininity.

Who wouldn't want to
meet a man who has millions, who isn't even bald?

- as Joyce Mannering in
Let's Make It Legal (1951)

I've been on a calendar, but never on time.

The body is meant to be seen, not all
covered up.

Sex is part of nature. I go along with nature.

I used to think as I looked out on the
Hollywood night - there must be thousands of girls sitting alone like
me, dreaming of becoming a movie star. But I'm not going to worry
about them. I'm dreaming the hardest.

Men aren't attentive to
girls who wear glasses.

- as Pola Debevoise in
How to Marry a Millionaire (1953)

If I play a stupid girl and
ask a stupid question, I've got to follow it through, what am I
supposed to do, look intelligent?

In Hollywood a girl's virtue is much less
important than her hair-do. You're judged by how you look, not by
what you are. Hollywood is a place where they'll pay you a thousand
dollars for a kiss and fifty cents for your soul. I know, because I
turned down the first offer often enough and held out for the fifty cents.

I knew I belonged to the public and to the
world, not because I was talented or even beautiful, but because I
had never belonged to anything or anyone else.

Looking back, I guess I used to play-act
all the time. For one thing, it meant I could live in a more
interesting world than the one around me.

I posed for this picture
and when it was published in U.S. Camera, they got all upset... It
was one of these 'artistic' pictures... it was on the beach with some driftwood.It got Honorable Mention...It was called Textures,
because you could see three different kinds of texture: the
driftwood, the sand and me.I got $25 dollars an
hour, and it took hours and hours. You'd be surprised.

- as The Girl Upstairs
in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

I could never pretend something I didn't
feel. I could never make love if I didn't love, and if I loved I
could no more hide the fact than change the color of my eyes.

How wrong it is for a woman to expect the
man to build the world she wants, rather than to create it herself.

I have too many fantasies to be a
housewife.... I guess I am a fantasy.

I just adore his asking
for more but my heart belongs to daddy.

- as Amanda Dell in
Let's Make Love (1960)

In spite of everything life is not without hope.

All men are the same.They just have different faces so that
women differentiate them.

A career is wonderful, but you can't curl
up with it on a cold night.

I am invariably late for appointments -
sometimes as much as two hours.I've tried to change my ways but the
things that make me late are too strong, and too pleasing.

That's the sweetest,
tenderest thing anyone ever said to me.

- as Cherie in Bus Stop (1956)

I'm for the individual as opposed to the
corporation. The way it is the individual is the underdog, and with
all the things a corporation has going for them the individual comes
out banged on her head. The artist is nothing. It's really tragic.

I've often stood silent at a party for
hours listening to my movie idols turn into dull and little people.

The thing I want more than anything else?
I want to have children.I used to feel for every child I had, I
would adopt another.

It's just terrible up there... Ohh, this
feels just elegant. I'm just not made for the heat. This is my first
summer in New York and it's practically killing me. You know what I
tried yesterday? I tried to sleep in the bathtub. Just lying there up
to my neck in cold water... But there was something wrong with the
faucet. It kept dripping. It was keeping me awake, so you know what I
did? I pushed my big toe up the faucet... The only thing was, my toe
got stuck and I couldn't get it back out again... No, but thank
goodness there was a phone in the bathroom, so I was able to call the
plumber... He was very nice, even though it was Sunday, I explained
the situation to him and he rushed right over... But it was sort of
embarrassing... Honestly, I almost died. There I was with a perfectly
strange plumber and no polish on my toenails.

- as The Girl Upstairs
in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

Dorothy, please, a lady
never admits her feet hurt.

- as Lorelei Lee from
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

No one ever told me I was pretty when I
was a little girl.All little girls should be told they're
pretty, even if they aren't.

The trouble with censors is that they
worry if a girl has cleavage.They ought to worry if she hasn't any.

You might as well make yourself fly as to
make yourself love.

People had a habit of looking at me as if
I were some kind of mirror instead of a person. They didn't see me,
they saw their own lewd thoughts, then they white-masked themselves
by calling me the lewd one.

I'm a failure as a woman. My men expect so
much of me, because of the image they've made of me - and that I've
made of myself - as a sex symbol.They expect bells to ring and whistles to whistle,but my anatomy is the same as any other
woman's and I can't live up to it

I try to enjoy myself when I can - I'll be
miserable enough as it is.

I had to use my wits or else I'd have been
sunk - and nothings going to sink me. Everyone was always pulling at
me, tugging at me, as if they wanted a piece of me. It was always,
'do this, do that,' and not just on the job but off, too.God, I've tried to stay intact, whole.

Arthur Miller wouldnt have married
me if I had been nothing but a dumb blonde.

Excuse me, but what is
the way to Europe, France?

- as Lorelei Lee from
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

Maybe Ill never be able to do what I
hope to, but at least I have hope.

A smile is the best makeup a girl could wear.

Being normal is boring!

Yes, there was something special about me,
and I knew what it was.I was the kind of girl they found dead in
a hall bedroom with an empty bottle of sleeping pills in her hand.

You're married. I KNEW it!You LOOK married.

- as The Girl Upstairs
in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

I wont be satisfied until people
want to hear me sing without looking at me.Of course, that doesnt mean I want
them to stop looking.

Im one of the worlds most
self-conscious people. I really have to struggle.

Your imagination! You think every girl's a
dope. You think a girl goes to a party and there's some guy in a
fancy striped vest strutting around giving you that I'm-so-handsome-you-can't-resist-me
look. From this she's supposed to fall flat on her face. Well, she
doesn't fall on her face. But there's another guy in the room, over
in the corner. Maybe he's nervous and shy and perspiring a little.
First, you look past him. But then you sense that he's gentle and
kind and worried. That he'll be tender with you, nice and sweet.
That's what's really exciting.

- as The Girl Upstairs
in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

(To the father of a
prospective beau)I want to marry him forYOUR money.

- as Lorelei Lee from
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

My work is the only ground Ive ever
had to stand on. I seem to have a whole superstructure with no
foundation but Im working on the foundation.

I think that when you are famous every
weakness is exaggerated.

Its not true that I had nothing on.
I had the radio on.

Dont you know that
a man being rich is like a girl being pretty? You wouldnt marry
a girl just because shes pretty, but my goodness, doesnt
it help?

- as Lorelei Lee from
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

Never let anyone dull your sparkle.

Love is rare, love is strange, nothing
lasts and people change.

Groucho (Detective Sam Grunion):Come in. Is there anything I can do for
you? What a ridiculous statement.

Marilyn Monroe (Grunion's Client):Mr. Grunion. I want you to help me.

Groucho:I have a little sand left. What seems to
be the trouble?

Marilyn Monroe:Some men are following me.

Groucho:Really? I can't understand why.

I do what I like, I like what I do.

Keep it classy, never trashy, just a lil nasty.

I think it's wonderful
that you're married! I think it's just elegant!

- as The Girl Upstairs
in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

Sugar Kowalczyk (Marilyn Monroe):I come from this musical family.My mother is a piano teacher and my father
was a conductor.

Josephine (Tony Curtis):Where did he conduct?

Sugar Kowalczyk (Marilyn Monroe):On the Baltimore and Ohio.

I dont stop when Im tired. I
only stop when Im done.

(Talking about a tiara)You DO wear it on your
head. I just LOVE finding new places to wear diamonds.

- as Lorelei Lee from
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

When youre young and healthy you can
plan on Monday to commit suicide, and by Wednesday youre
laughing again.

The true things rarely get into
circulation. Its usually the false things.

Fame will go by and, so long, Ive
had you, Fame.If it goes by, Ive always known it
was fickle.